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Now two years into the General Royalty System (SGR) the flaws and needed adjustments are clear, and the system must be tweaked to meet the intentions that it had during its conception says Senator Marítza Martínez

The Casanare Government Secretary Marlene Gutiérrez Oropeza said that the Interior Ministry has agreed to a “working road map” to deal with the controversial issue of Community Action Committees and their role in the hiring of local labor.

The Senate’s fifth commission held a debate on oil production, energy self-sufficiency and general oil policy, bringing in officials led by the Minister of Mines and Energy (MinMinas) Tomás González and Ecopetrol (NYSE:EC) president Javier Gutiérrez.

Ecopetrol (NYSE:EC) has inaugurated a new water treatment facilities in Acacías, Meta, which the NOC says will allow it to quickly increase production in the Castilla field by an additional 30,000bd.

With two new large biofuels refining plants planned for 2015 and 2016 and regulations that will increase the ethanol mixture in gasoline to 13.6% next year, the consumption of biofuels could grow by more than 50% in two years, says the president of the National Fuels Federation (Fedecombustibles) Jorge Bendeck.

The president of the Colombian Federation of Municipalities (Fedemunicipios) is concerned about the effect of falling oil prices and what that means for municipal budgets. But royalty distribution and the national government’s ability to use falling prices as a negotiating tool are also high on his list of concerns.

The former Ministry of Mines and Energy, Amylkar Acosta, says considering the decrease in oil prices Ecopetrol (NYSE:EC) and the industry must lower costs and guarantee a functioning pipeline system in this new scenario.

The count increased sharply to 49 this week, well above recent and long-term averages. The kidnapping of an Army general in Chocó on Sunday led President Juan Manuel Santos to suspend peace talks in Havana.

The USO held a number of activities to draw attention to third party outsourcing and the suspension of contracts, as the union looks to increase pressure on the NOC to limit the use of contractors.

Government officials have taken a new tone this week, insisting that Colombia is prepared for lower oil prices and that the fiscal budget’s long term fundamentals remain strong.